Rain Bird 9 Valve Sprinkler Timer

Originally purchased the 4 zone version to replace one of two systems that went out (front and back yards were done at different times). It worked so well, it got me thinking to replace the 4 zone with the 9 zone to cover the 7 zones needed. Compared to two clunky older systems this unit replaced, it is a dream. Granted, 10 years plus have gone by, this should be revolutionary. The standards are still the same but the User Interface significantly improved. Gone are the days of backup batteries and cryptic and sometimes inflexible settings. The rain sensor add on might make it even more interesting then again, how often would that even kick in in Sunny Southern California? The controller seems to also make the old sprinkler valves open up better as the water pressure appear to be greater now and spray pattern enlarged as result of replacing the older controller. Over all, very pleased. It is a great way to revitalize an aged sprinkler system. Now I have to seriously consider replacing some of the sprinkler heads as well as some of the valves. And since the hard work of the original install has already been done. This is an easy plug and play upgrade and changing programming so simple that the rest of the family can do it without much consternation. The complaint about multiple watering time has some minor merit although the rationale for watering multiple times evenly spaced out is well worth the reduced complexity it would otherwise add to elegant and simple to understand user interface. Highly recommend it for all but the most persnickety water schedules.

I have used several different models of timer/controller from Rain Bird and Orbit and this is by far the best. Many of the features have been covered in these reviews, so I am going to cover only the things that I didn't see in the other reviews.Multiple Common Wire ConnectionsThis unit can accommodate two common wires (see photo) so you can consolidate two separate systems into one (for example, one system for the back yard and one for the front).Water One and Water AllThere seems to be some confusion about this as a number of older reviews state that you cannot water a single station easily or water all stations. This feature has been added to the unit (see photograph). For water all, you just hit the Water All Now button. For watering a single station manually, you dial the station and then hit the Water One Zone Now button.Display next watering timeWhen the unit is set to Auto, it will not only display the current time, but it displays the date and time of the next zone to be watered (see photo) - a nice touch.Watering a zone multiple times per dayIt is true that you cannot directly control the additional watering times when you set a zone to water more than once a day. If you need this function, you will need to look elsewhere. For areas where it is not important to you exactly what time the second, third, or fourth watering per day is, the interface is pretty clear on when the zone will be watered (see photo).Overall InterfaceThe overall interface is very clear and easy to use. When programming a zone, you dial the zone you want, press the days that you want to water and set the time you want the zone to be watered. It all shows up very clearly, so there is no guessing if you set it correctly (see photo)

When we bought our new house, I purchased this unit to replace the huge, 1970's era timer that sounded like a ticking time bomb!As a previous owner of a Rain Bird 4-zone system very similar to this, I decided to stick with Rain Bird and get this unit for the new house, which had a total of 8 zones.The unit is completely silent and about 1/4 the size of the old one.Installation was incredibly simple and straightforward. Most of the time you simply hook the wires up in the same order you took the old ones off. I recommend taking a picture or two of your current wiring before doing anything. This will allow you to reference back to what color wire controlled what zone and at least put everything back the way it way should you find yourself over your head.Programming is also very simple. It also is pretty fool proof... for example, if you leave the start time for every zone at 8am, with each zone set to run for 5 minutes, then it will automatically start Zone 1 at 8am for 5 minutes, then Zone 2 for 5, then Zone 3, etc. This way, you can easily change the duration for each zone without having to ensure the start times for each zone do not overlap. It makes scheduling and updating very easy!